Business

A little over seven years ago, Tammi Emerson joined our sales department. Many of you probably know her from talking with her on the phone and seeing her at Conventions. When she first started here, she was still in high school – one of the only two high school students working here. She’d do anything asked of her with a smile, whether it was running to the office supply store, calling appraisers whose memberships were five years expired, or wiping down tables in the company cafe. Click to view..

If you've been reading the articles in this newspaper for a while regarding our revised Mercury Network, you might think that it will wind up being nothing more than a new AMC-like venture, or something akin to FNC's AppraisalPort hub. But ordering and delivering appraisals will be just the tip of the iceberg. Click to view..

A helpful Excel application to help appraisers chart the increase in their gas expenses and calculate the savings of moving to a vehicle with higher MPG rating. Click to view..

Believe it or not, you have access to change what Google says about you. Just like every page has its own content, every page has its own Page Title and Page Description. The Page Title is your Google listing. It’s the link in blue that shows up as the main entry for that page, and it’s also what a user will click to come to your site. Click to view..

The real estate market, and the appraisal industry specifically, has been in unprecedented upheaval during this correction, especially in these last few months. Every time you think you’ve seen it all, another bombshell comes along to rattle what you thought was your strong understanding... Click to view..

The release of XSites Desktop, featuring the Energizer plugin, has a lot of people looking at their XSites and seeing how they measure up. (For more details on the Energizer, see our article on XSites Desktop on page 6.) Our beta members were all comparing their scores and bragging about how they were able to boost them. So, it seems fitting this month to take an actual appraiser’s site and do a before and after — not just improving the XSite Energizer score, but boosting its appeal to search engines and website visitors. The objective here is to demonstrate simple things ordinary people can do to have a more effective site. In other words, we didn’t get our graphics department involved or recruit anyone for copy editing. Click to view..

As appraisers, we are tasked with the assignment of producing a credible and supportable report about a subject property. While the estimated market value we place on that property will always get noticed, the check boxes and narratives with regard to the subject market is getting more and more attention. In the current financial environment, supporting your opinions and conclusions is extremely important. The use of analytics may be used to add that needed support. Click to view..

Would you believe that you could get on your local talk radio station for free? You are an expert in local real estate values, so your local radio stations might want to hear from you. Getting on the radio requires a little chutzpah and media savvy. You’ve got to talk fast and feel totally confident in your expertise. I’ve met lots of appraisers and I know many of you qualify. If you are very comfortable talking about real estate values, the mortgage meltdown, and pending regulations like the HVCC, you have a good chance of getting some airtime either as a news interview or even better, on a local talk show. Click to view..

The market data we use is not as perfect as the “paired sales” examples from our textbooks. Are you finding it hard to prove your adjustments? Are you still using a list of block adjustments that your supervising appraiser gave you? Would you like to be more of an expert for your area? Click to view..

Here’s a story about one appraiser who makes working for AMCs work for him. Many appraisers choose not to work for Appraiser Management Companies (AMCs) because, they complain, the top priority of AMCs is getting appraisals fast and cheap — with quality a distant second. This story is about one appraiser who disagrees and has found a way to work with AMCs ethically and profitably Click to view..

While providing a “snapshot” of the market and economy at the community or regional level is important for the reader to gain perspective of the housing market and factors influencing it, FNMA is asking for neighborhood trends. Therefore it’s important to understand the difference between a neighborhood and a market area. Click to view..

In the middle of a challenging market, appraiser Anthony Lamandre is htting some of his highest income levels ever. Anthony was kind enough to share his time and explain the tactics he's been using that have lead to his continued success. Click to view..

The debate over its viability as a tool for appraisers is in full swing. I’ll go on record: iPhone 3G ranks with the best Windows Mobile, “business class” devices I’ve used (and I've used them all), and I’ll tell you why. Click to view..

OpenOffice is a good alternative to Microsoft Office, especially if money is tight. Although OpenOffice doesn't have all of the features that Office does, the most important ones are there. Click to view..

Did you know that WinTOTAL Aurora is the only formfiller with integrated Bird’s Eye aerial imagery provided free as part of your membership for free? It’s a very slick feature built into the Microsoft® Virtual Earth® mapping upgrade we introduced late last year. If you haven’t tried these maps, you’re missing out. They're a great addition to your report. Click to view..

Get your questions answered. Check out our answers to some of our more commonly asked questions. And if you have a question, send an e-mail to Editor@AppraisalPress.com. We answer every e-mail. Click to view..

It happens in nature between animals fighting for limited food supplies, political campaigns by politicians to win elections, in job interviews by applicants to obtain that desired position, during games and tournaments by teams to emerge as the victor, and in business when two or more parties actively seek the patronage of potential customers. Those participating in the “game” of competition are called competitors. Competition can be extremely tough (even brutal), especially when faced with a myriad of smart, motivated rivals. Click to view..

We know that the accuracy of property placement on your report maps is absolutely critical. Appraisers constantly tell us it’s a critical function that lends credibility to your work. Today, most appraisers use WinTOTAL to automatically “geocode” their properties and place them on their maps. What does the term “geocoding” really mean? Click to view..

In past issues, we’ve published a few articles about Vault and the Digital Workfile. We’ve compared not using Vault to playing Russian Roulette with your business, and talked about using the Digital Workfile to save money. Both are true, but I’d like to talk about the convenience and necessity of using them together. Click to view..

Things in the financial markets and the economy as a whole are changing so fast, it’s enough to make you want to unplug your TV and unsubscribe to all of your news feeds. As I was thinking about what to write for this article, I couldn’t stop considering the fact that regardless of what I write, it will be outdated by the time the paper leaves the press. Even the facts in the e-mail version will probably be outdated within twenty-four hours of when we press “send”. Click to view..